Cataloochee

Posted on June 3, 2014June 3, 2014 by Dusty Roads

Well here I am. Sitting in the car waiting for sunset and ELK. I’ve finally reached the Cataloochee. As sunset approached I decided to drive back through the valley. Near the little bridge the park service had erected rest rooms. I decided it might be wise to take advantage of them. When I returned to my car I spotted one of the rangers. At first he wagged a finger at me and said “Still too early” but then he must have felt bad for me because he had a change of heart.

He told me there were 2 elk out by the “Old Palmer Place”. He sent me back out through the gates where I found another dirt road to my left. About a mile down the road there was a farm house and right there I saw my first Elk in the wild.

The Catloochee delivered as promised!

Meanwhile back at the trail head, the herd arrived.

The Most Twisted Dirt Road in the World

Posted on June 2, 2014June 2, 2014 by Dusty Roads

“They” all said it was quite the drive. “They” all said it would take a long time. Most encouraged me to skip this stop but it’s in the auto touring pamphlet…and “they” promised me ELK!

Do any of my readers remember my trip to South Dakota when my sister and I got lost on the Pine Ridge Reservation and drove the ” longest dirt road in the world”? Well that one was straight. I found it’s twisted cousin here in the Cataloochee. Actually a good portion of it was on the way into the valley.

The brochure describes the Cataloochee as a an “idyllic mountain valley “, off -the- beaten- path”, and lovely destination. I’ll add fun if you are adventurous.

The 11 mile dirt road is basically a one lane road that spends much of it’s 11 miles twisting back on itself. There are sharp corners with blind turns and pray you don’t meet a vehicle coming in the other direction. There’s no shoulder to speak of and very little room to pull over. I did meet a few cars and we mostly hugged the sides of the roads til we could squeak by. It was the longest 11 miles I’ve ever driven. More than once I wondered if I’d gone the wrong way but there really wasn’t any place to make a wrong turn.

Finally I found a gate and a small sign “Cataloochee”. But beyond the gate was , you guessed it. More dirt road. I’d come this far I. I wasn’t going to stop now so Onward!

Finally as I rounded a turn and slid (literally) down the dirt and gravel hill, the road dumped me out of the trees and into a big valley. Several historic buildings were bordering the road. I came to a one lane bridge with not 1 ranger but 3 all parked right at the bridge. I stopped and asked if I’d found the Cataloochee and where were the Elk?

I was assured that I was in the right place but that it was too early. I could cross the bridge and follow the road to the end where there was a trail head and a place to turn around. They said the elk would be around eventually as it got closer to sunset.

I wasn’t looking forward to driving out on that road in the dark but I wasn’t giving up either. I drove to the trail head and parked to wait.

Views Along the Newfound Gap Road

Posted on June 1, 2014June 1, 2014 by Dusty Roads

The views along this route are beautiful.

The forest floor was covered in wildflowers. The sky was so blue. Here are just a few more moments captured in time.

I know mountains like these…the mountains of the east. They are older than the Rockies or the Cascades but in some ways no less wild.

Maybe growing up in the middle of the Adirondacks gave me an appreciation for these forested slopes. Or maybe not, maybe they are something everyone appreciates. After all, the Great Smokey Mountain National Park is the most visited National Park of them all.

Tennessee to North Carolina

Posted on May 31, 2014May 31, 2014 by Dusty Roads

A new day and another bright blue sky! So far the weather has been wonderful. I pulled out the Auto touring maps and decided to try the Newfound Gap Road. Just like a cove is another name for a valley in the vernacular of southern Appalachia, a “gap” is a low point along a ridge or mountain range.

The old road over the Smokey Mountains was at Indian Gap. When a lower , easier crossing was discovered it became the “Newfound” gap. Starting in Gatlinburg you will climb approximately 3,000 feet passing through hardwood, pine-oak and finally the evergreen- spruce- fir forest at the Newfound gap (5,046 ft.)

Here on the Newfound Gap road it wasn’t wildlife that held your attention.

It was the mountains. The vastness, the climb, the view to the valley below.

At one of the many pull offs I marveled over the twists and turns of the road below me, the one I’d just traveled without a thought.

A large parking area, a observation platform, restrooms and an entrance to the Appalachian trail all straddle the Tennessee / North Carolina State line.

Leaving the parking area and Tennessee behind you have a chance to detour up to Clingman’s Dome.

Clingman’s Dome Road climbs about 7 miles to within 1/2 mile of the highest peak in the Smokies (6,643 ft.) There’s a large parking area and restrooms where you can leave you car to hike the last half mile to the top of Clingman’s Dome and the observation tower. Everybody sing “On top of Old Smokey”. 🙂

Once you leave Clingman’s dome and head back down whether to Cherokee in North Carolina or back to Gatlinburg in Tennessee, it’s literally all down hill.

I continued toward Cherokee. I figured I’d arrive there about lunchtime and could decide where to go next while I enjoyed my lunch.

That proved to be a good choice. I continued to read my Auto touring guide over a sandwich at a very nice restaurant right on the main road. The number 5 tour was the Cataloochee and from the looks of the map it might not be too far. AS I checked out and paid my bill I asked the cashier.

He told me it was still quite a hike out there and if I wanted to wait around I might see elk behind the high school right here in Cherokee. But if I was dead set on going to the Cataloochee all I had to do was follow Rt 19 through Maggie Valley to RT 278 and then watch for the signs. He suggested I get there between 5:30 and 7:30.

Seemed like a good idea to make the trip now since I was more than 1/2 way there already.

An Educational Morning

Posted on May 25, 2014May 25, 2014 by Dusty Roads

Wednesday dawned bright and clear. Another beautiful day. This morning I have the “owner’s update meeting”. It’s one of the annoying parts of Time Share Ownership. Every time you go on a vacation using your time share they tell you at check in that you are scheduled for this meeting on a certain day and time. I have refused in the past but over the years I’ve found that you can get some good information and depending on the resort, some really nice premiums/rewards.

In Florida I have received Theme Park Tickets and a cruise to Cozumel. Here in Gatlinburg the premium was a $75.00 visa card. Not bad for an hour of my time. I’ll save the meeting details for another time when we’re talking about time shares. My reason for mentioning it is that my morning was tied up waiting for the meeting. I used the time to my advantage anyway.

Since I finally got the computer issues resolved I set up shop on the screened porch and hit my emails, FB and blog posts. I couldn’t edit any pictures so I used them “as is”. Around 10:30 I made my way to the building where the meetings were being held and spent the next hour being educated on the changes and costs related to same that Diamond resorts is making to their timeshare program. By the time they were done it was time for lunch.

I stopped at the desk to pick up my Visa card and got to chatting with the young lady working there. She was telling me all about the places to go to see wildlife. Like me, she would prefer that to a Theme Park. As I was about to leave she mentioned the elk at the Cataloochee. There’s that name again!

She was much more forthcoming about where it was located and drew me a map to help me find it. She warned me it would be a long drive. She also suggested that I head to Cades Cove no later than 3:30 because that is a longer drive than I’d been led to believe too.

So armed with this new information it was time to find someplace for lunch and go exploring. I think I’ll see what the Gatlinburg Bypass is all about and then head to Cades Cove.